I’d really love to know more about this topic. Apologies for the formatting:
> *ICA 2016 Preconference: The politics and economics of Chinese new media
> industries*
>
> *Call for Papers*
>
> *[Selected full papers will be included in a special issue for
> International Communication Gazette, to be published in early-2018.]*
>
>
> *Date and Venue*
>
> June 9th 2016, ICA conference hotel
>
> *Division Affiliations*
>
> Communication Law and Policy Division
>
> Communication and Technology Division
>
> Media Industry Studies Interest Group
>
> *The organizing committee*
>
> Weiyu Zhang, Associate Professor, National University of Singapore
>
> Zhan Li, Associate Professor, Xiamen University, China
>
> Jing Wu, Professor, Peking University, China
>
> Bingchun Meng, Associate Professor, London School of Economics, UK
>
> Min Jiang, Associate Professor, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, US
>
> *Keynote Speaker*
>
> Prof. Stephen Reese, School of Journalism, University of Texas at Austin
>
> *Spotlight Presentation*
>
> Selected best submission will be featured as a spotlight presentation.
>
> *Conference Fee (lunch and two tea breaks included)*
>
> · Free for presenters
>
> · 25 USD for general audiences
>
> *Sponsors*
>
> Xiamen University, China
>
> Peking University, China
>
> *Aim and Scope*
>
> Just like many other indicators of China’s development, digital media
> industries in China are constantly generating impressive figures. For
> example, Alibaba’s initial public offering in 2014 was ranked world’s
> biggest at $25 Billion; Wechat, the fastest rising social media app
> developed by Tencent, achieved a user base of 440 million within four years
> of its release. By February 2015, Chinese Internet users have reached 641
> million, more than double the number of users in the U.S. Numbers aside,
> however, there have not been much academic research on the regulatory
> context, the political and economic dynamics, as well as the broader
> implications at both domestic and global levels of such fast-pace
> development. For instance, there are increasing efforts from the Chinese
> government and elites to articulate alternative frameworks over the global
> governance of the Internet and new media industries.
>
>
>
> This preconference intends to serve as a platform to facilitate dialogues
> around *the political, the economic, the institutional and the policy
> aspects* of media industries in China, in view of the rapid development
> of digital media. But this is not just about having ‘China experts’
> analyzing Chinese companies or Chinese policies. We are keen to move beyond
> the ‘China exceptionalism” by taking *an explicitly global and
> comparative perspective*. For one thing, the ownership structure and the
> business practices of Chinese digital media companies are intricately
> related to global capitalism in general. For another, Chinese information
> technology companies, such as Baidu, Alibaba, ZTE and Huawei, are
> aggressively expanding their businesses overseas, especially in Africa and
> South East Asia, with varied degrees of success. Last but not the least,
> through platforms like the National Office for Internet and Information,
> and channels like the Sino-US Internet Forum, the Chinese authorities are
> actively participating in the construction of international and global
> policy frames concerning the future development of digital media industries.
>
>
>
> With the global reach of Chinese IT companies and the international
> ambition of Chinese government, it is imperative to understand how the new
> developments in Chinese digital media industries, are reconfiguring the
> politics and the economics of information and communication technologies
> (ICTs). Moreover, it is important to understand how traditional media such
> as mainstream newspapers respond to such changes and incorporate
> digitalization into their own industry plans. This preconference aims to
> invite scholars from all over the world to tackle the issue, primarily
> using China as a context in which innovative research questions and methods
> can be applied.
>
>
>
> We are particularly interested in papers that address the following
> themes:
>
> · The globalization and internationalization of Chinese media
> industries, including both Internet and other traditional media
>
> · The roles of international regulatory bodies and international
> non-governmental organizations in shaping the landscape of new media in
> China
>
> · The roles of Chinese authorities in shaping global policies
> regarding information and communication technologies (ICTs)
>
> · The economics of Chinese new ICT companies, including foreign
> and local venture capitalists, shareholders, business models, sources of
> profits, consumer strategy, etc.
>
> · The evolving political parallelism in Chinese media industry
>
> · Comparisons of Chinese new media industry with other countries’
> media industry
>
> *Abstract Submissions*
>
> Please submit a 500-words abstract in word or pdf format to
> ica15china@gmail.com. All submissions will be subject to a double-blind
> review by at least 2 reviewers. To facilitate the review process, please
> write a separate cover sheet with the paper title and affiliation/s and
> omit the affiliations in the actual abstract.
>
> *Deadlines*
>
> · Submission of abstracts: Feb 1st 2016
>
> · Notification of acceptance: March 1st 2016
>
> · Final paper submission: June 1st 2016
Mark Carrigan 